Learning to Pray, Baby Steps with Tom Albin

On one hand, prayer is so simple that the littlest child can pray. On the other hand, even the most spiritually mature men and women struggle with prayer at times. This eCourse is designed to review the very basic elements of prayer. A new born baby has the desire and ability to learn to walk and talk, and the same is true for the spiritual life of a Christian. Each of us has the ability to learn how to walk and talk with God.

The six week will focus on: 1) Prayer is Relationship, 2) Learning to Listen, 3) Learning to Talk, 4) Learning to Walk, 5) Learning to Fall Down and Asking for Help, and 6) Learning to Ask for the Needs of Others. The key passage for this eCourse is Luke 11:1-13 where the first disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. The primary teacher will be the Holy Spirit and Rev. Tom Albin, Dean of The Upper Room Ministries, will be the guide.

Schedule

This eCourse begins on Monday, April 15 and ends on Friday, May 24.

You may log in any time from anywhere you have internet access.

The course includes:

Weekly: brief video introduction, a reading assignment of 4 to 6 pages, questions for reflection, a community discussion

Tom Albin

Rev. Tom Albin is currently Dean of the Upper Room Ministries and Ecumenical Relations in Nashville, Tennessee. The eldest of four children raised on the family farm, Tom's elementary education was in a one-room schoolhouse on the Kansas prairie. He attended Ottawa University, Oral Roberts University, Fuller Theological Seminary and the University of Cambridge in England.

Tom grew up in a small church served by a circuit minister with three congregations. During his pastoral ministry in Oklahoma, Tom served as an associate pastor in a church of more than 6,000 members where he gave leadership to the areas of Evangelism, Discipleship, Prayer, Spiritual Formation, and College Ministries.

In 1987 Tom joined the faculty of Boston University School of Theology and taught courses in American Church History, Wesley Studies, Evangelism and Church Growth. The following year he moved to the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary to develop a program in Christian Spiritual Formation. In 1999 Tom joined the staff of The Upper Room Ministries.

Tom and his wife, Maryle, have three married daughters and six grandchildren.

About The Upper Room

The Upper Room® is a global ministry dedicated to supporting the spiritual formation of Christians seeking to know and experience God more fully. From its beginnings as a daily devotional guide, The Upper Room has grown to include publications, programs, prayer support, and other resources to help believers of all ages and denominations move to a deeper level of faith and service.